Ask the Food Critic

Riptide is introducing a new feature that will allow readers to ask restaurant reviewer Lee Klein questions concerning the local dining scene. Is it true that Daniel Boulud will be opening a namesake establishment in downtown Miami? (Yes.) Can you get me chef Klime Kovaceski’s palacinka recipe from the now-shuttered Crystal Cafe? (Yes.) Will the incessant spraying of chemicals used to sanitize tabletops in restaurants cause me to become ill later in life? (Probably.) What’s the secret to making a great brisket? (Frozen lima beans, shelled -- not Coca-Cola, as some lunatics would have you believe.) My cheap uncle is coming in for a visit. He loves ethnic food. Where should I take him and what should I order? (Puerco asado at El Palacio De Los Jugos). Can you take me to eat with you at one of your reviews? (Absolutely not.)

And so forth. Ask about restaurants, recipes, food history, anything culinarily related, really, although Mr. Know-It-All Smartypants Restaurant Critic is already hedging his bets by announcing that he won’t guarantee an answer. Or at least not an accurate one.